The present invention relates to an electronic power control device.
In general the conventional power control devices used for incandescent- and fluorescent-lamp brightness controls consist of switches and slide rheostats. The rheostats consume a considerable amount of energy. In addition, only manual control is possible.
Various types of analog memories have been devised and demonstrated. One type consists of a motor and a potentiometer. Another type incorporates a capacitor. Still another type consists of a combination of an A/D converter, a digital memory and a D/A converter. A further type consists of a magnet. A still further type is based on electrochemical reactions. The analog memory consisting of the combination of a motor and a potentiometer may be used for stepping a DC voltage up or down to a suitable level or for maintaining it at a suitable level but it has a defect that because of mechanical tolerances an output signal is deviated from an input signal. The analog memory consisting of an A/D converter, a digital memory and a D/A converter is disadvantageous in that it is complex in construction and large in size and requires a large number of parts.